Context.Mid-infrared emission features are important probes of the properties of ionized gas and hot or warm molecular gas, which are difficult to probe at other wavelengths. The Orion Bar photodissociation region (PDR) is a bright, nearby, and frequently studied target containing large amounts of gas under these conditions. Under the “PDRs4All” Early Release Science Program for JWST, a part of the Orion Bar was observed with MIRI integral field unit (IFU) spectroscopy, and these high-sensitivity IR spectroscopic images of very high angular resolution (0.2″) provide a rich observational inventory of the mid-infrared (MIR) emission lines, while resolving the HIIregion, the ionization front, and multiple dissociation fronts.Aims.We list, identify, and measure the most prominent gas emission lines in the Orion Bar using the new MIRI IFU data. An initial analysis summarizes the physical conditions of the gas and demonstrates the potential of these new data and future IFU observations with JWST.Methods.The MIRI IFU mosaic spatially resolves the substructure of the PDR, its footprint cutting perpendicularly across the ionization front and three dissociation fronts. We performed an up-to-date data reduction, and extracted five spectra that represent the ionized, atomic, and molecular gas layers. We identified the observed lines through a comparison with theoretical line lists derived from atomic data and simulated PDR models. The identified species and transitions are summarized in the main table of this work, with measurements of the line intensities and central wavelengths.Results.We identified around 100 lines and report an additional 18 lines that remain unidentified. The majority consists of HIrecombination lines arising from the ionized gas layer bordering the PDR. The HIline ratios are well matched by emissivity coefficients from H recombination theory, but deviate by up to 10% because of contamination by HeIlines. We report the observed emission lines of various ionization stages of Ne, P, S, Cl, Ar, Fe, and Ni. We show how the NeIII/NeII, SIV/SIII, and ArIII/ArIIratios trace the conditions in the ionized layer bordering the PDR, while FeIII/FeIIand NiIII/NiIIexhibit a different behavior, as there are significant contributions to FeIIand NiIIfrom the neutral PDR gas. We observe the pure-rotational H2lines in the vibrational ground state from 0–0S(1) to 0–0S(8), and in the first vibrationally excited state from 1–1S(5) to 1–1 S(9). We derive H2excitation diagrams, and for the three observed dissociation fronts, the rotational excitation can be approximated with one thermal (~700 K) component representative of an average gas temperature, and one nonthermal component (~2700 K) probing the effect of UV pumping. We compare these results to an existing model of the Orion Bar PDR, and find that the predicted excitation matches the data qualitatively, while adjustments to the parameters of the PDR model are required to reproduce the intensity of the 0–0 S (6) to S (8) lines.

Most low-mass stars form in stellar clusters that also contain massive stars, which are sources of far-ultraviolet (FUV) radiation. Theoretical models predict that this FUV radiation produces photodissociation regions (PDRs) on the surfaces of protoplanetary disks around low-mass stars, which affects planet formation within the disks. We report James Webb Space Telescope and Atacama Large Millimeter Array observations of a FUV-irradiated protoplanetary disk in the Orion Nebula. Emission lines are detected from the PDR; modeling their kinematics and excitation allowed us to constrain the physical conditions within the gas. We quantified the mass-loss rate induced by the FUV irradiation and found that it is sufficient to remove gas from the disk in less than a million years. This is rapid enough to affect giant planet formation in the disk.

Water is a key ingredient for the emergence of life as we know it. Yet, its destruction and reformation in space remains unprobed in warm gas. Here, we detect the hydroxyl radical (OH) emission from a planet-forming disk exposed to external far-ultraviolet (FUV) radiation with the James Webb Space Telescope. The observations are confronted with the results of quantum dynamical calculations. The highly excited OH infrared rotational lines are the tell-tale signs of H2O destruction by FUV. The OH infrared ro-vibrational lines are attributed to chemical excitation via the key reaction O+H=OH+H which seeds the formation of water in the gas-phase. We infer that the equivalent of the Earth ocean's worth of water is destroyed per month and replenished. These results show that under warm and irradiated conditions water is destroyed and efficiently reformed via gas-phase reactions. This process, assisted by diffusive transport, could reduce the HDO/H2O ratio in the warm regions of planet-forming disks.

Mid-infrared emission features probe the properties of ionized gas, and hot or warm molecular gas. The Orion Bar is a frequently studied photodissociation region (PDR) containing large amounts of gas under these conditions, and was observed with the MIRI IFU aboard JWST as part of the "PDRs4All" program. The resulting IR spectroscopic images of high angular resolution (0.2") reveal a rich observational inventory of mid-IR emission lines, and spatially resolve the substructure of the PDR, with a mosaic cutting perpendicularly across the ionization front and three dissociation fronts. We extracted five spectra that represent the ionized, atomic, and molecular gas layers, and measured the most prominent gas emission lines. An initial analysis summarizes the physical conditions of the gas and the potential of these data. We identified around 100 lines, report an additional 18 lines that remain unidentified, and measured the line intensities and central wavelengths. The H I recombination lines originating from the ionized gas layer bordering the PDR, have intensity ratios that are well matched by emissivity coefficients from H recombination theory, but deviate up to 10% due contamination by He I lines. We report the observed emission lines of various ionization stages of Ne, P, S, Cl, Ar, Fe, and Ni, and show how certain line ratios vary between the five regions. We observe the pure-rotational H$_2$ lines in the vibrational ground state from 0-0 S(1) to 0-0 S(8), and in the first vibrationally excited state from 1-1 S(5) to 1-1 S(9). We derive H$_2$ excitation diagrams, and approximate the excitation with one thermal (~700 K) component representative of an average gas temperature, and one non-thermal component (~2700 K) probing the effect of UV pumping. We compare these results to an existing model for the Orion Bar PDR and highlight the differences with the observations.

The JWST has captured the most detailed and sharpest infrared images ever taken of the inner region of the Orion Nebula, the nearest massive star formation region, and a prototypical highly irradiated dense photo-dissociation region (PDR). We investigate the fundamental interaction of far-ultraviolet photons with molecular clouds. The transitions across the ionization front (IF), dissociation front (DF), and the molecular cloud are studied at high-angular resolution. These transitions are relevant to understanding the effects of radiative feedback from massive stars and the dominant physical and chemical processes that lead to the IR emission that JWST will detect in many Galactic and extragalactic environments. Due to the proximity of the Orion Nebula and the unprecedented angular resolution of JWST, these data reveal that the molecular cloud borders are hyper structured at small angular scales of 0.1-1" (0.0002-0.002 pc or 40-400 au at 414 pc). A diverse set of features are observed such as ridges, waves, globules and photoevaporated protoplanetary disks. At the PDR atomic to molecular transition, several bright features are detected that are associated with the highly irradiated surroundings of the dense molecular condensations and embedded young star. Toward the Orion Bar PDR, a highly sculpted interface is detected with sharp edges and density increases near the IF and DF. This was predicted by previous modeling studies, but the fronts were unresolved in most tracers. A complex, structured, and folded DF surface was traced by the H2 lines. This dataset was used to revisit the commonly adopted 2D PDR structure of the Orion Bar. JWST provides us with a complete view of the PDR, all the way from the PDR edge to the substructured dense region, and this allowed us to determine, in detail, where the emission of the atomic and molecular lines, aromatic bands, and dust originate.

(Abridged) We investigate the impact of radiative feedback from massive stars on their natal cloud and focus on the transition from the HII region to the atomic PDR (crossing the ionisation front (IF)), and the subsequent transition to the molecular PDR (crossing the dissociation front (DF)). We use high-resolution near-IR integral field spectroscopic data from NIRSpec on JWST to observe the Orion Bar PDR as part of the PDRs4All JWST Early Release Science Program. The NIRSpec data reveal a forest of lines including, but not limited to, HeI, HI, and CI recombination lines, ionic lines, OI and NI fluorescence lines, Aromatic Infrared Bands (AIBs including aromatic CH, aliphatic CH, and their CD counterparts), CO2 ice, pure rotational and ro-vibrational lines from H2, and ro-vibrational lines HD, CO, and CH+, most of them detected for the first time towards a PDR. Their spatial distribution resolves the H and He ionisation structure in the Huygens region, gives insight into the geometry of the Bar, and confirms the large-scale stratification of PDRs. We observe numerous smaller scale structures whose typical size decreases with distance from Ori C and IR lines from CI, if solely arising from radiative recombination and cascade, reveal very high gas temperatures consistent with the hot irradiated surface of small-scale dense clumps deep inside the PDR. The H2 lines reveal multiple, prominent filaments which exhibit different characteristics. This leaves the impression of a "terraced" transition from the predominantly atomic surface region to the CO-rich molecular zone deeper in. This study showcases the discovery space created by JWST to further our understanding of the impact radiation from young stars has on their natal molecular cloud and proto-planetary disk, which touches on star- and planet formation as well as galaxy evolution.

(Abridged) Mid-infrared observations of photodissociation regions (PDRs) are dominated by strong emission features called aromatic infrared bands (AIBs). The most prominent AIBs are found at 3.3, 6.2, 7.7, 8.6, and 11.2 $\mu$m. The most sensitive, highest-resolution infrared spectral imaging data ever taken of the prototypical PDR, the Orion Bar, have been captured by JWST. We provide an inventory of the AIBs found in the Orion Bar, along with mid-IR template spectra from five distinct regions in the Bar: the molecular PDR, the atomic PDR, and the HII region. We use JWST NIRSpec IFU and MIRI MRS observations of the Orion Bar from the JWST Early Release Science Program, PDRs4All (ID: 1288). We extract five template spectra to represent the morphology and environment of the Orion Bar PDR. The superb sensitivity and the spectral and spatial resolution of these JWST observations reveal many details of the AIB emission and enable an improved characterization of their detailed profile shapes and sub-components. While the spectra are dominated by the well-known AIBs at 3.3, 6.2, 7.7, 8.6, 11.2, and 12.7 $\mu$m, a wealth of weaker features and sub-components are present. We report trends in the widths and relative strengths of AIBs across the five template spectra. These trends yield valuable insight into the photochemical evolution of PAHs, such as the evolution responsible for the shift of 11.2 $\mu$m AIB emission from class B$_{11.2}$ in the molecular PDR to class A$_{11.2}$ in the PDR surface layers. This photochemical evolution is driven by the increased importance of FUV processing in the PDR surface layers, resulting in a "weeding out" of the weakest links of the PAH family in these layers. For now, these JWST observations are consistent with a model in which the underlying PAH family is composed of a few species: the so-called 'grandPAHs'.

Context.Extraordinary observations of the Orion Bar by JWST have shown, for the first time, the incredible richness of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) emission bands and their variation on very small scales. These variations are the result of photochemical evolution of the PAH carrier.Aims.We aim to probe the photochemical evolution of PAHs across the key zones of the ideal photodissociation region (PDR) that is the Orion Bar using unsupervised machine learning.Methods.We used JWST NIRSpec IFU and MIRI MRS observations of the Orion Bar from the JWST Early Release Science programme PDRs4All (ID: 1288). We levered bisectingk-means clustering to generate highly detailed spatial maps of the spectral variability in the 3.2–3.6, 5.95–6.6, 7.25–8.95, and 10.9–11.63 μm wavelength regions. We analysed and subsequently described the variations in the cluster profiles and connected them to the conditions of the physical locations from which they arise. We interpreted the origin of the observed variations with respect to the following key zones: the HIIregion, the atomic PDR zone, and the layers of the molecular PDR zone stratified by the first, second, and third dissociation fronts (DF 1, DF 2, and DF 3, respectively).Results.Observed PAH emission exhibits spectral variation that is highly dependent on the spatial position in the PDR. We find the 8.6 μm band to behave differently than all other bands, which vary systematically with one another. Notably, we find a uniform variation in the 3.4–3.6 μm bands and 3.4/3.3 intensity ratio. We attribute the carrier of the 3.4–3.6 μm bands to a single side group attached to very similarly sized PAHs. Further, cluster profiles reveal a transition between characteristic profile classes of the 11.2 μm feature from the atomic to the molecular PDR zones. We find the carriers of each of the profile classes to be independent, and reason the latter to be PAH clusters existing solely deep in the molecular PDR. Clustering also reveals a connection between the 11 .2 and 6.2 μm bands and that clusters generated from variation in the 10.9–11.63 μm region can be used to recover those in the 5.95–6.6 μm region.Conclusions.Clustering is a powerful and comprehensive tool for characterising PAH spectral variability on both spatial and spectral scales. For individual bands as well as global spectral behaviours, we find ultraviolet processing to be the most important driver of the evolution of PAHs and their spectral signatures in the Orion Bar PDR.

Forty years ago, it was proposed that gas-phase organic chemistry in the interstellar medium can be initiated by the methyl cation CH3+ (refs. 1-3), but so far it has not been observed outside the Solar System(4,5). Alternative routes involving processes on grain surfaces have been invoked(6,7). Here we report James Webb Space Telescope observations of CH3+ in a protoplanetary disk in the Orion star-forming region. We find that gas-phase organic chemistry is activated by ultraviolet irradiation.

Measuring broad emission-line widths in active galactic nuclei (AGN) is not straightforward owing to the complex nature of flux variability in these systems. Line-width measurements become especially challenging when signal-to-noise is low, profiles are narrower, or spectral resolution is low. We conducted an extensive correlation analysis between emission-line measurements from the optical spectra of Markarian 142 (Mrk 142; a narrow-line Seyfert galaxy) taken with the Gemini North Telescope (Gemini) at a spectral resolution of 185.6+\-10.2 km/s and the Lijiang Telescope (LJT) at 695.2+\-3.9 km/s to investigate the disparities in the measured broad-line widths from both telescope data. Mrk~142 posed a challenge due to its narrow broad-line profiles, which were severely affected by instrumental broadening in the lower-resolution LJT spectra. We discovered that allowing the narrow-line flux of permitted lines having broad and narrow components to vary during spectral fitting caused a leak in the narrow-line flux to the broad component, resulting in broader broad-line widths in the LJT spectra. Fixing the narrow-line flux ratios constrained the flux leak and yielded the Hydrogen-beta broad-line widths from LJT spectra $\sim$54\% closer to the Gemini Hydrogen-beta widths than with flexible narrow-line ratios. The availability of spectra at different resolutions presented this unique opportunity to inspect how spectral resolution affected emission-line profiles in our data and adopt a unique method to accurately measure broad-line widths. Reconsidering line-measurement methods while studying diverse AGN populations is critical for the success of future reverberation-mapping studies. Based on the technique used in this work, we offer recommendations for measuring line widths in narrow-line AGN.

We performed a rigorous reverberation-mapping analysis of the broad-line region (BLR) in a highly accreting ( L / L Edd = 0.74–3.4) active galactic nucleus, Markarian 142 (Mrk 142), for the first time using concurrent observations of the inner accretion disk and the BLR to determine a time lag for the H β λ 4861 emission relative to the ultraviolet (UV) continuum variations. We used continuum data taken with the Niel Gehrels Swift Observatory in the UVW 2 band, and the Las Cumbres Observatory, Dan Zowada Memorial Observatory, and Liverpool Telescope in the g band, as part of the broader Mrk 142 multiwavelength monitoring campaign in 2019. We obtained new spectroscopic observations covering the H β broad emission line in the optical from the Gemini North Telescope and the Lijiang 2.4 m Telescope for a total of 102 epochs (over a period of 8 months) contemporaneous to the continuum data. Our primary result states a UV-to-H β time lag of 8.68 − 0.72 + 0.75 days in Mrk 142 obtained from light-curve analysis with a Python-based running optimal average algorithm. We placed our new measurements for Mrk 142 on the optical and UV radius–luminosity relations for NGC 5548 to understand the nature of the continuum driver. The positions of Mrk 142 on the scaling relations suggest that UV is closer to the “true” driving continuum than the optical. Furthermore, we obtain log ( M • / M ⊙ ) = 6.32 ± 0.29 assuming UV as the primary driving continuum.